Latest News
| Afghan response to civilian casualties from U.S. airstrikes |
|
|
|
| Written by Web Master | |
| Saturday, 12 June 2004 | |
|
Some responses from the Afghan government to civilian casualties from U.S. airstrikes since the American-led invasion in 2001:
_July 13, 2006: President Hamid Karzai ordered an investigation into reported civilian casualties during a coalition airstrike July 10 in Tirin Kot, in which U.S. forces claimed more than 40 Taliban were killed. Residents said at least four civilians died. _ May 23, 2006: Karzai ordered an inquiry into the deaths of at least 16 civilians in a U.S. airstrike and called for a meeting with the commander of American forces. The civilians died in bombings May 21-22 in the town of Azizi, in southern Kandahar province. Karzai later met with Lt. Gen. Karl W. Eikenberry and told him that "every effort" should be made to ensure the safety of civilians while fighting militants. _ April 17, 2006: Karzai ordered security authorities to probe the killings by U.S. forces of seven civilians on April 15 in the eastern Kunar province bordering Pakistan, and demanded that coalition forces take more care when targeting militants in residential areas. _ Sept. 20, 2005: Karzai challenged the need for major foreign military operations in Afghanistan, saying airstrikes were no longer effective and that U.S.-led coalition forces should focus on rooting out terror bases and support networks. _ July 2, 2005: A U.S. airstrike on a house in eastern Afghanistan killed as many as 17 civilians, prompting a rebuke from Karzai. An Afghan government team was sent to the site in Kunar province to investigate. _ May 1, 2005: Karzai urged U.S.-led forces to use "extreme caution" in pursuing Taliban and al-Qaida militants after at least two civilians were killed in an April 28 airstrike in Zambori village in central Uruzgan province. _ Jan. 31, 2004: An American airstrike on a village in Uruzgan province on Jan, 17, 2004, killed 10 civilians, including women and children, Karzai said, citing an Interior Ministry investigation. On Feb. 5, the deputy interior minister told The Associated Press there were doubts about the evidence and said Taliban militants were trying to discredit the American military. _ Dec. 5-6, 2003: On Dec. 6, a U.S. airstrike, said to target a Taliban commander, killed nine children in an Afghan mountain village in eastern Ghazni province. The attack occurred the day after a U.S. raid on a suspected militant's compound in eastern Paktia province killed six children. The Afghan government said it supported fighting terrorism but urged the U.S.-led coalition to "be very careful not to repeat such tragedies." In early 2004, the U.S. military said it had modified its rules of engagement but refused to give details. _ July 1, 2002: A U.S. airstrike killed 48 people in attacks on five villages in Uruzgan province, Afghan officials said. The dead included 25 members of an extended family attending a wedding celebration. After the raid, Karzai said "all necessary measures" must be taken to avoid civilian casualties and urged closer coordination between U.S. and Afghan forces. A U.S. investigative report later confirmed 34 dead. Source: AP |
|
| Last Updated ( Saturday, 15 July 2006 ) |
| < Prev |
|---|